Nate Morgan scored in double overtime as the Grande Prairie Storm pick up a 3-2 win over the Spruce Grove Saints

Grande Prairie Storm forward Nate Morgan (shown here) scored a short-handed goal at 15:41 of double overtime as the Storm picked up a 3-2 win over the Spruce Grove Saints in Alberta Junior Hockey League action at Revolution Place. Game four is Thursday night at Revolution Place. Puck drop is 7:30 p.m. The Saints lead the best-of-seven series two game to one.Gordon Anderson / Daily Herald-Tribune

The Storm clouds finally dissipated, resulting in one night of sunshine for the local junior hockey team.

Nate Morgan scored the game winner at 15:41 of the second overtime as the Grande Prairie Storm picked up a 3-2 win over the Spruce Grove Saints in Alberta Junior Hockey League playoff action at Revolution Place on Wednesday night.

The winner—and Morgan’s second of the night—came short-handed as the 18-year-old made an outside inside fake on Nick Leyer at the top the slot, before barging in and beating goalie Matt Davis with a far-side backhand, high to the blocker of the left-handed keeper.

Prior to the goal, Morgan and Nathanial Bierd were hemmed in their own zone for more than a minute as the Saints whipped the puck around put couldn’t get a shot passed Storm keeper Kaeden Lane.

Bierd picked up the loose puck near the Storm bench and skated across the blueline before tossing the disc across to Morgan, who did the rest.

The victory snapped a winless skid dating back to a 3-2 win over the Lloydminster Bobcats on Jan. 22. The Storm picked up three regular-season shootout losses and one playoff overtime loss in 17 games, prior to the win over Spruce Grove. The Storm dropped game one of this series, a 3-2 extra session loss.

“It’s been a long time coming,” Head Coach Ryan Aasman said of the win. “We’ve lost a lot of close games where we can’t just put it through. It’s a young group kind of thing and (it was) a bit of a mental block for us. (On Wednesday night) we played the right way, stuck to the game plan. They found a way to get it done. I’m so proud of the group for the effort. It was wild.”

Lane turned in a strong performance, stopping 50 shots for the win. In the two previous games in the series, Lars Kaliel got the net over Lane.

In the post-game stretch outside the dressing room, Morgan was discussing the goal with teammates and noted he wasn’t aiming for that particular spot. He was just “trying to get the puck on net.”

But a goal scorer’s gonna score.

At the other end of the hallway, the jubilation didn’t last too long for Storm captain Jackson Wozniak.

The California resident was clearly fatigued—his feet, lower legs and forehead all the colour of crimson, like he’d been out in the sun too long.

“I think (the win) was a confidence booster for everybody” Wozniak said. “We needed the belief we can do this and I think we got that. We’re going to have our fun for 20 minutes and then it’s back to work.”

The Saints lead the best-of-seven series two games to one with game four set for Thursday night at Revolution Place. Puck drop is set for 7: 30 p.m.

The third

Wozniak tied the game at 1-1 at the 4:45 mark, taking a pass from Max Giangualano and ripping a quick shot to the blocker side of Davis.

Giangualano created a turnover at the left face-off circle, spun around and went to the net, finding Wozniak with a back-hand pass in the slot.

Wozniak took a high-sticking penalty at 7:43 of the third, as the Saints capitalized on the man-advantage for the second time when Ryan Conroy’s shot bested Lane to the glove side at 9:12.

Morgan evened the score at two taking a cross-ice slap pass from Ethan Strang and drove the puck into the open side at 15:02, setting the stage for his goal more than two periods later.

The club showed a lot of resiliency entering the third period trailing by a goal, tying the game before trailing again. Chalk up another valuable lesson about what it takes to win in the post-season. The Saints will be determined and even tougher to beat in game four.

Maybe the Storm will too.

“When we look at our roster compared to theirs, we’ve got 1,000 less games played and we’ve got guys playing in situations they’ve never played in before,” Aasman said. “They’re learning as they’re going but it’s all heart and soul, they leave everything out there.”

The Saints opened the scoring at 11:47 of the first period as Graham Gamache came off the goal line and jammed the puck through Lane on the powerplay.

The Saints went two for five on the man-advantage while the Storm were blanked on five opportunities, including three chances in OT. In the last two games, there Storm are 0-11 on the man advantage.